Cattle guard



' s l. SMITH CATTLE GUARD Filed Feb. 3, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEYAug. 24, 1926. 1,596,898

s l. SMITH CATTLE GUARD Fil F,eb- 1925 2 Sheets-Shoot 2 S1111111151222??? WIT ESSES ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 24, 1926.

UNITE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

s IRMA s vrrrn, on-srnmerrntn, MISSOURI.

CATTLE GUARD.

Application filed February This invention relates to cattle guards.adapted to be used at railway crossings to prevent cattle from of way.

The object of the invention is to provide a guard which may be mosteconomically manufactured in sections, and easily secured tostandard'railroad' ties in a simple manner with ordinary tools, and morespecifically a; guard which is so constructed that it-will protect theties from rain, male Figure 2' is a plan view thereof with: -a

portion broken away.

Figure 3 is a vertical section takenon the line 3-3 of Figure2.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of one of the standard sections,constituting a part of the invention.

The invention is shown asapplied' to a railroad track, having rails 10,which are secured in the usual manner to standard'ties 11, except thatthe ties to which the inven tion is secured are preferably arrangededgewise, instead of resting upon their wider faces. The guard is madeup of a plurality of sections 12, which may be formed from sheet metalof comparatively heavy gage. Each of these sections has two oppositelysloping faces 13 and 14;, which meet in an apex or ridge 15. the slopingportions being continued at their bases to form narrow vertical strips16 and 17, which are adapted to fit over the upper edges of the tie, andto be secured thereto by suit able nails 18. Continuing from the lowerthese vertical strips are down-.

edges of wardly and outwardly sloping portions, as shown at 19 and 20.The sloping portion 19 is broad enough to reach substantially to thelower edge of the next tie, where it is received in a trough or gutter21, which is secured to the vertical face of the adjacent tie bysuitable nails 22, and extends straying onto the right 3, 1925. SerialNo. 6,576.

continuously throughout the length of the tie. The other sloping portion20 -is comparatively narrow, and overhangs a gutter 21 securedtherebeneath to the same tie. The edge of the sloping portion 20 isprovided throughout its length with serrations or teeth 23.

It will be seen that whenever ananimal steps upon the guard, the slopingsurface thereof will cause the animals foot to slide downwardly andagainst the teeth 23, thus discouraging it from further forward travel.The sloping strip 20 is disposed at a right,- angle to the slopingportion 19, or nearly so, in order that the teeth may not catch in theanimalslegs or tear the same, but

'on the, contrary will permit the animal to The easily withdrawhis feetandretreat. sloping edge of the last section remote from the crossingmay be received in a gutter secured to the next tie, as is the case withthe other sections, or it may be made narrow, as shown at 24, in whichcase no gutter need be provided for the next tie.

' The sections 12 are all made of the same standard size, which issuohthat two sections placed end to end will cover the'distancebetweenthe rails of a standard gage track, anda single section will extend fromthe outer edge of the rail, and overhang the end of the tie. Being allof the same size, they may be economically manufactured and shipped inquantities to the section foreman. The shape of the sections permitsthem to be quickly secured to the tie without any modification of thelatter, and without any tool other than a hammer. The sections may alsobe conveniently nested for shipment.

When the guard is installed in the manner herein shown and described,all the rain which falls on the guard drains into the gutters 21, and isdischarged beyond the ends of the ties, so that no rain can getunderneath the ties to wash out the ballast, and consequently, it willbe unnecessary, for a long time, to remove the guard in order to ballastthe track, or to replace the ties at that point.

It is preferred to arrange the ties on edge in order to leave suflicientspace between them, so that the sections 12 may have the most effectiveslope without extending upwardly far enough to be caught by'anythingwhich may be dragging from the train.

While I have shown and described. in

detail the preferred form of the invention, it is to be understood thatvarious modifications may be made therein without any material departurefrom the salient features or the invention. It is, therefore, myintention to include all such modifications within the scope of theappended claims.

What is claimed. is:

1. A cattle guard comprising a plurality of sections adapted to besecured to and to cover successive railroad ties, each sectionterminating at opposite sides in oppositely sloping portions, one ofwhich has a toothed terminal edge, and gutters beneath said sectionswith each toothed edge overhanging and in spaced relation to one gutter,and the other sloping portion of the same section extending into thenext gutter.

2. A cattle guard comprising a plurality of sections adapted to besecured to and to cover successive railroad ties, each sec tion havingoppositely sloping portions, one of which is comparatively narrow' andterminates in a toothed edge, and gutters adapted to be secured to theties with each toothed edge overhanging and in spaced relation to onegutter, the other sloping portion of the same section beingcomparatively broad and extending iiio the gutter on the next tie.

A cattle guard comprising a plurality of sections adapted to be securedto and to co er successive railroad ties, each sec tion havingoppositely sloping portions integrally joined at the top to form aridge, the bases of said portions being extended Vertically downwardlyto form narrow strips which fit over the edges of a tie and terminatingin oppositely sloping lower portions, and gutters beneath said sections,one of said sloping lower portions of each section having av toothededge overhanging and in spaced relation to a gutter, and the other lowerportion of the same section extending into the next gutter.

A cattle guard section comprising two oppositely sloping portionsintegrally joined at the top to form a ridge, narrow strips integrallyconnected to the lower edges of said sloping portions, and extendingvertically downwardly and adapted to fit over the upper edges of a tie,and lower outWardly and downwardly sloping portions integrally connectedto the lower edges of the narrow strips, one of said lower portionsterminating in a toothed edge.

5. A cattle guard section comprising two oppositely sloping portionsintegrally joined at the top to form a ridge, narrow strips integrallyconnected to the lower edges of said sloping portions and extendingvertically downwardly and adapted to fit over the upper edges of a tie,tions integrally connected to of the narrow strips and sloping downwardicy and outwardly in planes approximately at right angles to each other,one of said lower portions being narrower than the other and terminatingin a toothed edge.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have heretoaliixed my signature.

and lower pors IRMA SMITH.

the lower edges 7

